Spotlight
by Cheeky Slytherin Lass
Summary: A new camper is fascinated by Nico, and he doesn't know how to handle it.:: For Sam


_For Sam. Merry Christmas, my love!_

* * *

Nico looks down when he feels the timid tug on his shirt sleeve. A tiny girl, maybe ten or eleven, peers up at him with wide blue eyes.

"Are you really the son of Hades?" she asks.

Once, the question would have made him tense. He would have to brace himself for the fear and judgment that would follow. But times have changed, and the little girl only looks at him with curiosity. "I am," he answers.

Her jaw drops. "Wow. I'm Thea! My mom is Iris."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Nico."

He starts to walk away, assuming the conversation has dropped. The novelty of meeting the son of Hades usually fades when the new campers notice the other things like the climbing wall. But the little girl moves with him.

"Have you really been to the Underworld?"

"Yeah. Quite a lot," he says.

Thea looks like she might fall over with excitement. She fidgets restlessly as she walks beside him. "Is there really an Elysium? Have you ever been? Do pomegranates really grow in the Underworld? Is Hades nice?"

Before he can answer a question, she fires off five more. Nico can feel his head spinning as he tries to keep up.

"Actually-"

"Have you been here long? I just got here yesterday! It's so awesome! I can't wait to play capture the flag. And make s'mores! I've never been to summer camp before."

He nods, abandoning any hope of answering her questions. It might be easier to just let her talk, he decides.

"Did you ever go to camp before this?"

"No."

Thea nods eagerly, as though this is some piece of important information.

"Hey!" Will jogs up to him with that too bright smile, and Nico's heart melts a little inside his chest. "I thought we were going canoeing today."

"Who's that?" Thea asks, her curious blue eyes on Will now, and Nico almost feels guilty at the relief.

"Will Solace," Will says, shaking her hand.

"I'm Thea Simmons," Thea says before turning her attention back to Nico. "Is he your friend?"

"Well, no."

A small smile plays at her lips. "Is he your boyfriend?"

Nico's cheeks burn, and he silently curses Will for watching on so amused. "Yes."

Thea squeals, clapping her hands together in delight. "He looks like a surfer. Does he surf? Who's his godly parent? How long have you been together? Have you kissed? Is he a counselor?"

"You know, he's standing right there," Nico says, gesturing desperately at Will. "You could ask him yourself."

"Actually, I just remembered. Kayla asked me to meet her for a quick archery, um, match. Gotta run!" Will says, pressing a kiss to Nico's cheek.

"I hate you," Nico groans, too low for Thea to hear.

"Love you, too, my little storm cloud," Will says before dashing off.

"He seems nice," Thea comments.

…

"Rough day?" Percy asks.

Nico rubs his temples. "There's this new girl. Nice kid. But gods! She asked question after question after question!"

"Really? Can't imagine what that's like," Percy says dryly.

"Lucky you. She's so curious! And I swear she can ask about a hundred questions in about a minute!"

"You don't say."

Nico wonders why Percy doesn't sound surprised. Maybe he's had more experience. He's been at the camp longer, after all, and the others regard him as a hero. It would make sense that kids would want to talk to him.

"What do I do?"

"It's annoying, isn't it?"

Nico nods. "You have no idea."

Percy laughs, and Nico wonders what he could find so amusing about the situation. "Nico, seriously. Do you not remember when you were ten? When you first met me? You asked so many questions that I couldn't even keep up."

Nico cringes at the reminder. "Oh."

"I wanted to strangle you. A lot," Percy says. "But after a while, you grew on me. And you've saved my life lots of times."

"So, she's me, and I'm you?"

"No. You're you," he says. "I'm me."

Nico rolls his eyes. Maybe he should keep Percy and Leo apart for a while. They're bad influences over each other.

"The point is, this kid is looking to you. It's weird. You're probably uncomfortable. I know I was. But you can't just dismiss her like I tried to do with you. That came back to bite me really quick."

"I'm not good with people."

Percy pats his back. "You've got this, man. I believe in you."

…

Nico takes a deep breath. He doesn't like approaching people, but he has to do this. He won't make Percy's mistakes.

"Hey, Thea," he calls, waving as he approaches the young girl.

Thea brightens when she sees him. "Nico!" she squeals.

Nico can't help but to smile. "Have you had your first sword fighting lesson yet?"

She shakes her head.

"Well, let's find you a sword. I can show you a few tricks some skeleton soldiers taught me in my father's kingdom."

"Skeleton soldiers?" she gasps, bouncing up and down. "That's so cool! Are there a lot of skeletons down there? I thought it was just souls!"

Nico takes her hand, leading her along. "I'll tell you all about it while we train, okay?"


End file.
